2011 PLAYOFFS - BRING IT ON !!!

The ultimate sports tournament, the NHL playoffs …. Gotta love it. Vancouver Canucks fans are all giddy, for the first time ever, the Canucks are the Stanley Cup favourite heading into the 16 team showdown. But don’t ever forget that stunning upsets happen in the playoffs, and Vancouver face their conquerors of the past two seasons in round one ….

Also be prepared for house league quality officiating, the annoying and dorkish Pierre McGuire, loudmouth Mad Mike Milbury, and more than likely Bob Cole, the past his prime play by play man with the golden voice and mixed up mind. Hopefully this time around the cbc will have someone to tell Cole who the players are, and maybe, just maybe, Cole won’t refer to any of the teams as the Leafs … though he will be openly cheering for the Canucks and Habs …

On a more positive note, Canadian viewers will have some solid hockey analysts from TSN in Bob McKenzie and James Duthie, and CBC will counter with Ron MacLean and Grapes, plus the underrated PJ Stock. Throw in a mix of former players, some of them still basking in their own glory ( Kelly Hrudey ?? ) and some of them offering decent analysis ( the best would be Cassie Campbell. The highly decorated Canadian women’s legend has no problem keeping her ego in check, even though she has had more gold draped around her neck than any of the ex-NHL guys ) …..

Whatever. To the point, here is how round 1 will play out …

WESTERN CONFERENCE

CANUCKS vs BLACKHAWKS – Chicago had its roster gutted. Stan Bowman was in a bad spot, but did a decent job of getting rid of guys he didn’t need, like Versteeg and Huet, Burrish … he made a mistake with Ladd and Big Buff, but both guys tailed off late in the year ….Chicago’s goaltending is unproven, Crawford being green and Turco being washed up …. The Canucks added grit, but Luongo is still a playoff bust with a swollen head. Still, Vancouver should get the best of Chicago this time around, and in an easy manner …… CANUCKS SWEEP IN FOUR

SHARKS vs KINGS – Los Angeles looked good until x-mas, then struggled mightily, squeaking into the post season. Anze Kopitar is a spectator after grotesquely mangling his ankle …. LA need another year to get things figured out and tuned up …. But of course this is the Sharks involved, and they had a great playoff for two rounds last year. They also have the shaky modern day Hardy Astrom in net with Anti Niemi ….. the Kings could pull this off, but that would be a serious stretch ….. SHARKS IN FIVE

RED WINGS vs COYOTES – Same matchup as round 1 last year, where the Coyotes couldn’t handle the Wings experience. If Phoenix can play with some poise, and support Bryzgalov, plus pressure Jimmy Howard, they could tip the Wings … Detroit has had decent playoff success over the past few years, so they are due for an early exit …. Though the Wings still have their big names, can a team really win with the likes of Drew Miller, Eaves, and Abdelkader ??? ….. COYOTES IN SEVEN

DUCKS vs PREDATORS – The Ducks had an interesting year, and surged up the standings late in the season, grabbing the 4 seed. But goaltending is a concern, and Nashville is due to win a series …. The Preds are well coached, and Barry Trotz just keeps on doing his thing. The Ducks have the big three, Selanne, plus under rated d-man Lubomir Visnovsky, but beyond that it is sketchy …… PREDATORS IN SIX

EASTERN CONFERENCE

CAPITALS vs RANGERS – If you can believe it, some big name hockey guys are picking the Rangers. Open Ice Hitter is not. The Capitals played possum most of the year, turning on their game over the last quarter of the season to grab top seed in the East … goaltending is an issue in Washington, but the three youngsters got it done when they had to. Look for Braden Holtby to take the reins. Also look for the Caps to dispatch the Rangers with ease ……. CAPITALS SWEEP IN FOUR

FLYERS vs SABRES – Much has been said of the Sabres play after the sale of the team …. Much has been made of the Flyers struggles thru the final 20 games of the year …. But …. Philly are built for the playoffs, and the slate is wiped clean in the post season. Just ask the Flyers or the Devils about last year … though the Sabres are feeling confident, look for the Flyers to figure things out and dispatch Ryan Miller and his oversized equipment. Just don’t bank on one goalie getting all the glory. If Laviolette and Holmgren are smart, they will get Leighton back in the mix …… FLYERS IN SIX

BRUINS vs CANADIENS – The Habs have had zero success against the two big and tough teams in the East during the past three years. 2 wins in 14 games when playing the Bruins or Flyers – teams that are bigger, better, faster, tougher, more skilled, etc, etc …. And that won’t change this year. Anybody who counts on Scott Gomez when the pressure is on will be disappointed … and Chicken Turd Cammaleri isn’t going to light it up again this year like he did last spring …. Carey Price has been decent, but Thomas is the 2011 Vezina winner …… BRUINS IN SIX

PENGUINS vs LIGHTNING – Pittsburgh experienced a nightmare scenario with injuries to its two superstars. They also experienced dreamy success through that situation, and though they were shafted out of the 2 seed they deserved, it doesn’t matter. The run is going to come to an end. Tampa were awful to close out the season, but they will beat Pittsburgh because they have their horses ready to go, and actually in the line up … Roloson will find his game …… TAMPA IN SEVEN

– RINGING THE BOARDS

– A few heads rolling off the chopping block so far …. Most notably, the injustice in Ottawa, where Bryan Murray canned Cory Clouston. Murray, the destructor of an Ottawa team that played for a Stanley Cup years ago ( it seems ) makes CLouston take the fall for Murray’s own mismanagement of the Senator’s player personnel …. Sean Couturier is a big body who had a higher points per game average than any of the other top scorers in the Q, meaning he would have won a second straight scoring title had he not played in the world juniors … Who really thinks LeMaire won’t be back behind the Devils bench next season ?? I will believe LeMaire is retired after he has been away from the Devils and the game for about a decade …. Along with Jeff Skinner, fellow rookies Logan Couture and Michael Grabner have scored 30 goals, a lofty total for rookies in the era of inflated goa l equipment ….

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